Rabbitproof fence is a 2002 australian drama directed by phillip noyce film based on the book follow the rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington garimara. Under western australias invidious removal policy of the 1930s, the girls were taken from their aboriginal families at jigalong on the edge of the little sandy desert, and transported halfway across the. The film rabbit proof fence conveys the importance of family, belonging and country to the aboriginal people and provides the audience with an insight of the division between the europeans and the aboriginal people. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in follow the rabbitproof fence, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. He even presents the reader with pictures of his brother khoa wearing a dress.
The following two lessons students watched rabbit proof fence. Doris pilkington nugi garimaras book follow the rabbitproof fence. It concerns the authors mother, and two other young mixedrace aboriginal girls, who ran away from a western australian settlement at moore river. O neville is the chief protector of aborigines who thinks he is helping the aborigines when actually he is hurting them more. Follow the rabbit proof fence is a novel by doris pilkington garimara. Rabbit proof fence character letters 1922008 past three lessons have been focused on issues surrounding the stolen generations. The director, philip noyce displays these themes by the use of symbolism and motifs. Find rabbit proof fence lesson plans and teaching resources. As larissa behrendt notes in her book on the film, this is the film that. Considering follow the rabbitproof fence as memoir and life writing. Margaret pomeranz, while describing rabbitproof fence as a very good film, noted that it looked at the children, rather than ever getting to know them. The film rabbitproof fence is based on this true account of doris pilkingtons mother, molly, who as a young girl led her two sisters on an extraordinary 1,600 kilometre walk home.
In short, noyce was a filmmaker at the height of his career when he made rabbitproof fen. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. It was this whiteman built fence that lead the girls back home. Noyces film is based on the book follow the rabbitproof fence by the late doris pilkington nugi garimara, which tells the story of her. Analysis film techniques of rabbit proof fence english. Divide your class into small groups to discuss the scene at jigalong depot where the girls were taken from their family 00. This book, written by doris pilkington, tells how her mother molly and her younger cousins gracie and daisy in the life of an aboriginal woman, no one is more important than her mother when she is. Jigalong had been established in 1907 as a government maintenance base for the workers who travelled up and down the fence, clearing away debris and mending any breaches in the wire. Through the analysis of a passage taken from the novel, i described the main features of the. Along they way they are met by a variety of folk who understand their plight and help them with food, clothes, matches and not a word to the authorities. Based on a nonfiction book by the indigenous author doris pilkington whose mother molly is one of the three main characters, the film.
In rabbitproof fence, effective editing provides the viewer with a number of points of view when the. Based on a true story, the book is a personal account of an indigenous australian familys experiences as members of the stolen generation the forced removal of mixed. Racism and colonialism english settlers claimed australia as a british colony in the late 1700s, marking the beginning of a long and insidious process of displacement and extermination for australias indigenous people, the aborigines. Rabbitproof fence is a 2002 australian drama film directed and produced by phillip noyce based on the book follow the rabbitproof fence by doris. Rabbitproof fence is a simple, inspirational tale of triumph and survival as we follow molly, gracie and little daisy while they make the arduous trek, without food and water, to get back home. Texts explore themes of human experience and cultural significance, interpersonal relationships, and ethical and. Follow the rabbitproof fence study guide contains a biography of doris pilkington, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Gracie, and daisy with food and warm clothes when they stop at her farmhouse during. Although we will only be focusing on one of these themes, here is a brief description of the others. Reflect on ideas and opinions about the stolen generations, identifying past and present. One such theme was the concept of a nation and the way in which cultural products of the nation shape our sense of identity. The rabbit proof fence was built down the centre of australia to contain the plague of rabbits from entering farm land.
The aboriginal people of australia have endured great suffering since white settle began in 1788. The visual techniques that the director used to show that it was during 1930s were costumes and setting. The most astonishing words in rabbitproof fence come right at the end, printed on the screen as a historical footnote. Follow the rabbitproof fence follow the rabbitproof fence is an australian book by doris pilkington. In follow the rabbitproof fence pilkington recalls with a searing irony one of the more farcical projects of land management in the newly federated states of australia. Litcharts from the creators of sparknotes, something better. Many people have considered how this text and the form of the memoir belong to. It concerns the authors mother, and two other young mixedrace aboriginal girls, who ran away from the moore river native settlement, north of perth, in order to return to their aboriginal. Loss, dispossession, and reclamation theme icon family. The costume that were used were big and detailed dresses for women who were in. An analysis of doris pilkingtons follow the rabbitproof fence. In this lesson students will place themselves in the.
The theme of family, culture, and identity in follow the. Our teacher edition on follow the rabbitproof fence can help. Her mother was very proud of her and her father brought her gifts of clothing and pretty colored ribbons. Rabbitproof fence australia 2002 the case for global film. Follow the rabbitproof fence characters from litcharts the. In 1907 a fence 1,834 kms in length was built from the great southern ocean to the coast of the top end for the purpose of preventing rabbits invading. Rabbit proof fence letter writing our changing world.
From when she was young, molly had learned that the fence was an important landmark for the mardudjara people of the western desert who migrated south from the remote regions. The film presents itself as a true story, based on the book by dorothy pilkington, which in turn is based upon detailed research and interviews with two of the. How does the film rabbit proof fence and the picture book the rabbits, by phillip noyce and john marsden respectively, position a responder to feel sympathetic for the aboriginal people in the film and book. This study guide consists of approximately 25 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of rabbitproof fence. This book is simply written, but extremely evocative and can easily be read in a couple of hours. Follow the rabbitproof fence literary elements gradesaver. Rabbitproof fence is the harrowing true story of three mixedrace aboriginal children who walked a thousand miles to get back to their mothers.
Follow the rabbit proof fence study guide contains a biography of doris pilkington, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Traditional cultural knowledge and the strength of family ties are the champions in the end. In this way, follow the rabbitproof fence is a meditation on the cultural clashes of two worlds, where forced assimilation is just one of the very powerful forces at play. The holes in the rabbitproof fence quadrant online. The policies depicted in the movie were enforced by the australian government, we are told, until 1970. Costumes and makeup give the audience visual cues or information about characters. Rabbitproof fence captures their universally touching plight and unparalleled courage in a beautiful testament to the undying strength of the human spirit. To me, follow the rabbitproof fence is a book about connection to country and.
Similar to the book, rabbitproof fence serves the important if not cathartic purpose of empowerment through storytelling, that is, giving voice to experiences and perspectives that would otherwise remain buried under the sweep of history. On wednesday february students watched the national apology by mr. Follow the rabbitproof fence is described as a memoir by the reading australia project. In the film rabbit proof fence directed by philip noyce, it portrays how the aborigines were treated during 1930s in jigalong, western australia. Based on a true story, the book is a personal account of an indigenous australian familys experiences as members of the stolen generation the forced removal of mixedrace children from their families during the early 20th century. Discuss the symbolism and motifs in the rabbit proof.
Follow the rabbitproof fence themes from litcharts the. Based on the book follow the rabbit proof fence 1996 removal of halfcaste aboriginal children molly craig, daisy burungu, and gracie fields forcibly taken away from their mother moore river native settlement escape the mission and follow the rabbit proof fence themes. Set in 1931, rabbitproof fence brings to the screen the horrific consequences of a british policy that removed australian children who were of mixed whiteaboriginal background from their homes a practice that continued until the 1970s. Reviewed in the united kingdom on 25 november 2014. Aboriginal children of mixed race were taken by force from their mothers and raised in training schools that would prepare them for lives as. Despite the loss, sorrow, racism, and dispossession which mark doris pilkington s family history, a strong and resilient sense of collective identity is ultimately what spurred molly, daisy, and gracie to escape captivity and undertake the long and dangerous journey homeward. From rabbit proof fence movie worksheets to movies rabbit proof fence videos, quickly find. Our teacher edition on follow the rabbit proof fence can help. Phillip noyces film, which is based on the book follow the rabbit proof fence by doris pilkington garimara, the daughter of the eldest runaway, molly, is a beautifully crafted look at one of the darkest episodes in australias blackwhite relations and is set to reignite the debate surrounding the stolen generations. Rabbitproof fence was warmly received by both audiences and critics. Rabbit proof fence in the context of australian identity. Molly and the girls must then elude the authorities on a dangerous 1,500mile adventure along the rabbitproof fence that bisects the continent and will lead them home. The character of daisy in follow the rabbitproof fence. Molly leads her younger sister and cousin on a daring escape and in a bid to find her way home, following on foot the rabbitproof fence.
Christine olsen, who based the work on a book published in 1996 by doris. Rabbitproof fence is the short, but completely captivating story of three girls escape from a halfcaste aboriginal centre and their epic, long walk home back to their families. Rabbitproof fence is a useful film text to study for the following reasons. It was made into a film in 2002, entitled rabbitproof fence.
Follow the rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington, nugi. This film would make an excellent addition to any curriculum or class dealing with racism, government oppression, global history, indigenous peoples, family bonds, or individual powerlessness in the face of centralized power. Follow the rabbitproof fence is an australian book by doris pilkington, published in 1996. The timeline below shows where the character daisy appears in follow the rabbitproof fence. The state barrier fence of western australia, formerly known as the rabbit proof fence, the state vermin fence, and the emu fence, is a pestexclusion fence constructed between 1901 and 1907 to keep rabbits and other agricultural pests, from the. In the introductory lecture our attention was focused on a number of core themes which run throughout the course. The heart of the story of rabbitproof fence is the escape of three young girls from a settlement that they. Given the context outlined above, it isnt surprising perhaps that rabbitproof fence proved a controversial film release in australia. They knew that once they reached billanooka station, it was simply a matter of following the rabbitproof fence to their. Knowing that the interpretation from nonindigenous people may lead towards the misrepresentations of indigenous. Equally, australian film classics book rabbitproof fence, written by 2011 nsw australian of the year larissa bernhardt, is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in. Intriguing traditions of song, dress, food, and spirituality are also portrayed, along with an explanation of the rabbit proof fence that helps them return home, the longest actual fence in the world.
This is a long entry over 6000 words and offers ideas about the film covering. But their will and instinct to be with their strong culture has the girls escape the camp prison and follow the rabbitproof fence back home. Rabbitproof fence explores themes such as aboriginal. And i like to read follow the rabbitproof fence in the same way, as a love letter to a mother, a way of walking in her shoes. Free essays from bartleby follow the rabbit proof fence, remembering. Rabbitproof fence page 2 au curriculum connections history.
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